He successfully crushed a bloody insurrection by violent Islamists in the 1990s; he suppressed, brutally at times, a growing prodemocracy protest movement that gained steam in 2003 to 2005; and he parried until recently Washington's attempt to force substantive democratic reforms on Egypt, made most forcefully during the years of the George W. Bush administration.

When Mr. Serra criticized Brazil's growing tax revenues as a symptom of the bigger bureaucracy and increased government spending that have developed under the current administration, she parried the criticism by reminding viewers of growing prosperity.

Mr. Sarkozy parried questions from journalists about his opposition to Turkish membership in the EU, describing Turkey as a big country with an important international role to play that should work closely with the EU.